The Unwritten Laws of Business

by W.J. King, James G. Skakoon (Revised by)

The bestselling business classic that Raytheon CEO
William Swanson made famous .

Every once in awhile, there is a book with a message so timeless, so universal, that it transcends generations. The Unwritten Laws of Business is such a book. Originally published over 60 years ago as The Unwritten Laws of Engineering , it has sold over 100,000 copies, despite the fact that it has never been available before to general readers. Fully revised for business readers today, here are but a few of the gems you’ll find in this little-known business

If you take care of your present job well, the future will take care of itself.
The individual who says nothing is usually credited with having nothing to say.
Whenever you are performing someone else’s function, you are probably neglecting your own.
Martyrdom only rarely makes heroes, and in the business world, such heroes and martyrs often find themselves unemployed.


Refreshingly free of the latest business fads and jargon, this is a book that is wise and insightful, capturing and distilling the timeless truths and principles that underlie management and business the world over.

The little book with the big history.

In the summer of 2005, Business 2.0 published a cover story on Raytheon CEO William Swanson’s self-published pamphlet, Swanson’s Unwritten Rules of Management . Lauded by such chief executives as Jack Welch and Warren Buffett, the booklet became
a quiet phenomenon.

As it turned out, much of Swanson’s book drew from a classic of business literature that has been in print for more than sixty years. Now, in a new edition revised and updated for business readers today, we are reissuing the 1944 classic that inspired a number of Swanson’s “rules”: The Unwritten Laws of Business. Filled with sage advice and written in a spare, engaging style, The Unwritten Laws of Business offers insights on working with others, reporting to a boss, organizing a project, running a meeting, advancing your career, and more. Here’s just a sprinkling of the old-fashioned, yet surprisingly relevant, wisdom you’ll find in these

If you have no intention of listening to, considering, and perhaps using, someone’s opinion, don’t ask for it.
Count any meeting a failure that does not end up with a definite understanding as to what’s going to be done, who’s going to do it, and when.
The common belief that everyone can do anything if they just try hard enough is a formula for inefficiency at best and for complete failure at worst.
It is natural enough to “look out for Number One first,” but when you do, your associates will be noticeably disinclined to look out for you.

Whether you’re a corporate neophyte or seasoned manager, this charming book reveals everything you need to know about the “unwritten” laws of business.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Management, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Self Help

112 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1944

About the author

Librarian note: There are other authors with this name in this data base. This one is W.J.^^King.

Reviews

[Patrick Sherriff · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can read this in an hour or two, and if you are new to the world of work and especially management, it will be the best couple of hours you could spend reading about work. Reading it now as a self-employed post-company old-fogey, I notice how much of it is concerned with behaving respectfully of the hierarchy and status quo. That's not a bad thing at all if you want a career in a corporate environment, less essential if you want to foster the entrepreneur within. Still, good advice for being an ethical businessperson and respectful human being.

* * *

Patrick Sherriff publishes a monthly newsletter - http://eepurl.com/bFkt0X - highlighting good fiction published in English about Japan. He lives in Abiko with his wife and two daughters.

[Mohammed Alhaddad · Rating 2 out of 5]

كتاب ممتع و سهل ...معظم الافكار المذكورة تعتبر بديهية في التعامل في عالم الشركات في يومنا هذا ، السبب البسيط لهذا يرجع لكون الكتاب صدر قبل 60 سنة و هذا ما يدل على بصيرة الكاتب .
لقد استفدت من بعض الافكار ، لكني كنت اطمع بالمزيد.

[Jesslyn Woo · Rating 2 out of 5]

'The spirit and effectiveness with which you tackle your first humble tasks will very likely be carefully watched and may affect your entire career.'

My assigned mentor from my company suggested this book for me to read- I agree with some of the things in this book other things not so much. Loved the thought though, thanks Glenn!

[Phan Tram · Rating 4 out of 5]

Old book but not old content, very helpful for fresh graduate. However, the book was written mainly working in corporation, may not really helpful with start-up business owners

[Alex Ewig · Rating 4 out of 5]

9/10
Actually a ton of useful advice

[iis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku ini berisi tentang hukum-hukum sikap profesional yang tidak tertulis dalam bekerja.

Menurut saya, Isi dari buku ini sangat jelas, singkat, dan tegas sehingga pesan yang dituang tersampaikan, walaupun banyak kutipan kalimat yang sama ditulis kembali di halaman yang berbeda, mungkin sebagai penekanan penting bagi kita yang membacanya.

Kesimpulan yang saya dapat dari buku ini yaitu:
Sebagai Karyawan Muda maupun Manajer jangan pernah anggap remeh suatu pekerjaan, bisa jadi tugas tersebut sangat dipantau secara cermat dan dapat mempengaruhi karir kita secara keseluruhan. Tunjukkan kemampuan kita untuk menyelesaikan berbagai hal macam pekerjaan dengan kualitas 3 karakteristik dasar yaitu : Inisiatif, Cerdik, dan Tekun.

Kemudian buku ini juga memaparkan attitude seorang manajer terhadap karyawannya, rekannya, serta departemen lain. Tak lupa pula buku ini mengingatkan pentingnya manajer menyadari bahwa dirinya dan karyawannya harus memiliki keterampilan/pengetahuan untuk pengembangan diri di perusahaan tersebut.

[Yola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku yang sudah tua, tapi memiliki isi yg muda. Buku ini menurut saya sangat berguna bagi para freshgraduate. Didalam buku ini banyak termuat hukum-hukum sikap profesional yang tidak tertulis dalam bekerja. Ada satu Kutipan yang saya sukai di dalam buku ini, "Jangan mengkritik seorang bawahan didepan orang lain, khususnya didepan bawahannya sendiri", yang dimana banyak sekali case-case seperti ini sudah umum terjadi di sebuah perusahaan. Padahal case seperti ini dapat meruntuhkan semangat dan prestise orang tersebut. Seorang pemimpin harus berhati-hati untuk tidak mengkritik staffnya apabila sebenarnya kesalahan yg terjadi disebabkan oleh dirinya sendiri. Seperti ketika pemimpin tersebut tidak memberitahu, memperingatkan maupun melatih staff nya dengan benar.
Dan bagi saya pribadi yg bekerja di frontoffice, ada sebuah kutipan yang sangat cocok bagi saya yaitu "ketika berurusan dengan pelanggan dan pihak luar, ingatlah bahwa anda mewakili perusahaan, tunjukkanlah sikap penuh tanggungjawab dan wewenang"

[Sirjon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku ini menurut saya sangat berguna bagi para freshgraduate. Didalam buku ini banyak termuat hukum-hukum sikap profesional yang tidak tertulis dalam bekerja. Ada satu Kutipan yang saya sukai di dalam buku ini, "Jangan mengkritik seorang bawahan didepan orang lain, khususnya didepan bawahannya sendiri", yang dimana banyak sekali case-case seperti ini sudah umum terjadi di sebuah perusahaan. Padahal case seperti ini dapat meruntuhkan semangat dan prestise orang tersebut. Seorang pemimpin harus berhati-hati untuk tidak mengkritik staffnya apabila sebenarnya kesalahan yg terjadi disebabkan oleh dirinya sendiri. Seperti ketika Dan bagi saya yg bekerja di frontoffice, ada sebuah kutipan yang sangat cocok bagi saya yaitu "ketika berurusan dengan pelanggan dan pihak luar, ingatlah bahwa anda mewakili perusahaan, tunjukkanlah sikap penuh tanggungjawab .

[Dea Almira · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is suitable and related in daily life for anyone who is working or doing business, there are many unwritten laws that we can learn from this book. The advice covers everyone who works, from the beginners employees to seniors in the company because it provides knowledge about how to be the best employee and to be able to adapt to environment in the workplace/business in any field of science, this book is also a material for self-development, and can be one of the elements in the formula for a successful career, and the principles that have been presented in this book must be diligently applied and developed in practice in order to become an effective asset in life.

[Devonne West · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was original written in 1944 specifically for new engineers. What a marvelous little book! This book should be required reading for first-time job holders. It would be great to see where the principles set forth in this book would take those individuals. There's just so much simple, common sense in this book that transcends time and technology.
Here is just one of the gems from the book - "If you have no intention of listening to, considering, and perhaps using someone else's opinion, don't ask for it.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buku ini memberikan pemahaman mengenai cara bersikap dalam menjalankan sebuah perusahaan di mana apabila kita diberi kesempatan oleh perusahaan untuk menduduki jabatan yang lebih tinggi seperti Manajer maka kita juga harus bisa memberikan kemampuan terbaik kita dalam mengelola perusahaan tersebut termasuk mengelola sumber daya manusia yang ada di dalam perusahaan di mana kita harus bisa membuat mereka memberikan kemampuan terbaik mereka dalam bekerja agar tujuan perusahaan bisa tercapai dengan baik

[Paul Bard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This rewrite of a 1944 book on how to function in a big corporation lays out rules for people to impersonally and coldly play the game.

In many ways it’s the basics of good personhood. Finish what you start, have clear boundaries, let people know, promote yourself.

Ironic, then, that in order to put it into practice you have to read between the lines and find out what you actually do operationally.

It’s not bad, but it does seem very basic. However, mastering the basics and practising them is probably important.

[Mhd Lutfi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Menurut saya buku ini cukup menarik untuk dibaca sebagai bahan pengembangan diri. Didalamnya terdapat beberapa nasihat-nasihat yang disampaikan secara jelas dan bagus. Sebagai seorang karyawan tentunya kita harus siap mengahadapi tugas-tugas yang memang tidak sesuai dengan ilmu kita, dari tugas tersebut mungkin kita tidak suka atau senang. Namun kita harus bertanggung jawab atas kepercayaan yang diberikan atasan kepada kita.

[Prajwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short read, to the point. Basic stuff about how to operate in a corporate environment, probably most useful to the beginner (you're guaranteed to learn these laws in your career, might want to minimize the cost).

[Ummi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Di buku ini lebih menjelaskan bagaimana mendeteksi seorang manajer, sikap seorang manajer dan kesulitan menjadi seorang manajer. Lebih menyoroti sisi seorang manajer dalam perusahaan. Bagus untuk pengembangan diri dan pembelajaran sebagai seorang manajer.

[MartyS · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, sweet and to the point. A true classic.

As many of the reviews have mentioned: this book touches on many “rules” that you already know (or have learned etc). These reminders are timeless and the book is structured well: you can open it at any time on any page to revise.

[Wafa · Rating 3 out of 5]

يعتبر كدليل ارشادي للموظفين بشكل عام وللمديرين بشكل خاص حيث انه اغلب المواضيع موجه للمدراء وكيفية ادارة المشاريع والمرؤوسين وعمليات الاشراف ، الجميل في الكتاب انه تطرق للمبادىء الاخلاقية المفترض ان تكون لدى الموظفين واهم المبادىء المهنية وحاول ان يغطي اغلب الجوانب بدون تعمق

[Criss · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good. Short, relevant tips. Should buy this and review every year, if not more.

[Masatoshi Nishimura · Rating 3 out of 5]

It might be good read if it is your first time seeing business motivational book. It is short and concise. Otherwise, there is one boring shallow unscientific book.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more about presentation than skill

[Zack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fine.

[Ayush Agrawal · Rating 4 out of 5]

It delivers what it promises. The advices are practical and useful in day to day business and interpersonal relationships.

[Joshua Hunt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like talking business and ethics with a grandparent over a coffee. Well worth the short time required to read. Nothing new but some age-old advice and helpful reminders.

[Tantowi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku yang sangat bagus untuk di baca, karena memberikan pengetahuan tentang bagaimana menjadi karyawan yang terbaik. selain untuk mendapat ilmu untuk memanejemen diri sendiri agar kita dapat sukses.

[Powell Omondi · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books i've read, useful nuggets to everyone. I wonder why it was initially meant for engineers, the lessons were very informative.

[Yves Verbiest · Rating 2 out of 5]

Short book on corporate policy, not so much on business.

[Vishnu · Rating 3 out of 5]

A QUICK 2 HOUR READ SAYS ALL THE BASICS OF MANAGEMENT

[Curtis Rother · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book has some good content, I didn't find anything extraordinary or truly wise about it. I'd recommend it for anyone at the start of their career as a primer for best practices

[ilker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great resource for all young professionals. I read it repeatedly myself.

[Christopher Peruntungan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kesuksesan dalam bisnis dan karier lebih banyak ditentukan oleh karakter, inisiatif, tanggung jawab, dan kemampuan bekerja dengan orang lain daripada sekadar kecerdasan atau keahlian teknis.